Larry Portzline

Born and raised in Central Pennsylvania, Larry Portzline shares many characteristics with the men in this book.
He was an academic underachiever early on, occasionally directionless, and worked at a variety of jobs before settling into a professional writing career. He was an award-winning newspaper reporter, did some freelancing, and later worked for the Senate of Pennsylvania.
Portzline went to college off and on as a “non-traditional” student, receiving a bachelor’s degree in English from Elizabethtown College at the age of 33 and a master’s degree in the Humanities from Penn State at 40.
Since then he’s taught writing and literature at several colleges. In addition, he started a national grassroots movement dubbed “Bookstore Tourism,” which supports independent bookstores by promoting them as a group travel destination. He also wrote a book on the topic.
Portzline’s encore career goal is to return to the theatre roots he left behind as a young man and become a playwright.
He lives in Williamsport, Pennsylvania with his wife Deb and his Old English Sheepdogs Ernie and Gertie.